PRIME Minister Anwar Ibrahim said any form of government aid given during the by-election campaigns for Pulai and Simpang Jeram cannot carry the symbol of any political party.  

Anwar, who is also Pakatan Harapan chairman, said the matter had been discussed with Johor Menteri Besar Onn Hafiz Ghazi. 

“There is an issue about the distribution of government aid to the people; party symbols cannot be used for this. This was practised by Perikatan Nasional before, and I believe there are also one or two cases in the unity government. 

“Symbols of political parties cannot be used because all government aid is from the government,” he said after attending the “Kenduri Rakyat” and handing over 1,000 Rahmah baskets in Dataran Taman Dahlia today. 

The Election Commission (EC) has set tomorrow as nomination day for the two by-elections, while early voting is on September 5 and polling day is September 9. 

The by-elections were called following the death of Salahuddin Ayub on July 23. Salahuddin had held the post of Pulai MP as well as Simpang Jeram assemblyman.

Anwar said during the campaigning period, all party machinery and leaders should abide by EC rules to ensure smooth running of the election process. 

Earlier on, Anwar said the government, in not wanting the people to be burdened with the increasing cost of living, would ensure everything within its control continued to be carried out, including the provision of subsidies for essential goods.

This included continuing and expanding the Jualan Rahmah initiative, which is the late Salahuddin’s legacy. 

He, however, said there were things beyond the government’s control. 

“An example is the Indian government’s announcement of increase in export tax for onions by 40%, which is expected to have an impact on the price of onions in this country,” he said. 

As such, for the long-term, the government was focussing on strengthening the agricultural sector to reduce the country’s dependence on food imports, which reached tens of billions of ringgit every year. – Bernama, August 25, 2023.